Improving my Game: Math/Theory Aspect (Long Post)
07-28-2017
, 02:21 AM
I wish I found this forum earlier. Hope this post doesn't seem too stupid or overkill but this is the beginner questions thread so ... yeah no judgement right? >.<
Hi Y'all
Off the bat I want to say I am not aspiring to be a pro; I love the game, and I just want to get to a very decent/advanced level, however I'm a college student. My short term goal is to break into the $1/2 - 2/5 home cash games as well as the many MTT's our poker club hosts. And then once I'm over 21 take shots in casinos and wsops and blah blah you've prob heard it many times before.
I'm trying to improve the mathy/theory aspect especially. I'm at a point where I've seen all the concepts and understand (not master ofc) most of the fundamentals - except the math and equity calculations. I always see people on youtube plug in stuff on their "equity calculators". I think this will definitely also help me see WHY concepts and certain plays are the way they are and help me better understand Theory, GTO etc. The only math I know is how to calculate very basic pot odds (anything more complicated than 1/2, 1/3, 1/4, or pot and my brain gives up lol) and basic flush/straight draw percentages and the 4/2 rule for calculating equity with outs.
I just have no idea where to start and how to approach it. This forum is so huge, and I want to start at a logical place because clearly this hasn't been clicking for me yet. It seems like all decent players, even more per se 'Intuitive ones', know at least a good amount of theory and some of the math. I'm not looking to be OTB_RedBaron and somehow play close to GTO.
A bit of background of me (you can skip the next 3 paragraphs if you don't care - as most of you are real money regs while im a "play money reg" - before you laugh, im in the US and under 20 so...
)
I've been 'playing' poker recreationally for 5 years. I've never played real money Online because I can't - as i've explained already, so I don't have any pokertracker stats or graphs, but i've played a good amount of volume (i'm not talking nanonoko style) with play money on pokerstars (don't laugh) and live micro stakes cash with friends and in that poker club.
I used to be a complete nit my first few years of playing because all I knew about poker was watching the 2009 WSOP main and playing this stupid site called Zynga Poker. Instead of remaining an absolute clueless donk who thinks they know how to play after watching TV, I've gotten much better (relatively) from self teaching myself as described below and less tight by playing HU SNG's and Cash.
However nonserious my background looks, I love this game more and more each day and I've still been following poker intensely (hopefully as you can tell by my jargon) and self teaching myself week in and week out for the past 2 years. I've looked up a lot of things online myself, I've watched like 75% of all the poker clips on youtube possibly out there already, tried out/experimented a lot of things through lots of hands, and finally I discovered this amazing community here on 2+2. I know to get better and to the next step I need to ask people who know what they are doing, especially since I don't have the luxury of playing legit regs online.
I've self taught myself to a level where at least intuitively, like Dan Colman says (lol), I can read hands and see many spots without using math. I understand ranges and always use range analysis in my game (but not in a way that ties in pot odds and theory). I just "feel" without much mental calculations - i just do the range analysis thing and "does the story make sense". I also use exploitative strategy and try to adapt to opponents. Again, Like pretty much any concept I've seen and at least understand to some extent (i.e VPIP, floating, PF ranges, 3B/4Bet & multiway pots, blockers, board texture, ICM, donk betting, reverse implied odds, Nash Push-Fold, MTT v 6max v HU play, etc). Aside from more volume, I know the one thing I am absolutely not shored up on in order to move to the next level is general theory and the math part. Whenever I would stumble onto anything about advanced theory with the equity charts and the mathy parts with these formulas, I would be too hesitant to learn that. The only thing i understand is that you need to "make your opponent indifferent from calling or folding" based on your betting size and bluffing frequency, and you need to construct your specific combos of ranges.
So, 2+2, what can I do to improve theory and the math part, and probably my game in general for someone my level? I'm not trying to overestimate my level at all because I know I haven't actually had real online cash game experience, so please any suggestions would be awesome.
Thanks so much especially if you've read to this point haha.
Hi Y'all
Off the bat I want to say I am not aspiring to be a pro; I love the game, and I just want to get to a very decent/advanced level, however I'm a college student. My short term goal is to break into the $1/2 - 2/5 home cash games as well as the many MTT's our poker club hosts. And then once I'm over 21 take shots in casinos and wsops and blah blah you've prob heard it many times before.
I'm trying to improve the mathy/theory aspect especially. I'm at a point where I've seen all the concepts and understand (not master ofc) most of the fundamentals - except the math and equity calculations. I always see people on youtube plug in stuff on their "equity calculators". I think this will definitely also help me see WHY concepts and certain plays are the way they are and help me better understand Theory, GTO etc. The only math I know is how to calculate very basic pot odds (anything more complicated than 1/2, 1/3, 1/4, or pot and my brain gives up lol) and basic flush/straight draw percentages and the 4/2 rule for calculating equity with outs.
I just have no idea where to start and how to approach it. This forum is so huge, and I want to start at a logical place because clearly this hasn't been clicking for me yet. It seems like all decent players, even more per se 'Intuitive ones', know at least a good amount of theory and some of the math. I'm not looking to be OTB_RedBaron and somehow play close to GTO.
A bit of background of me (you can skip the next 3 paragraphs if you don't care - as most of you are real money regs while im a "play money reg" - before you laugh, im in the US and under 20 so...
) I've been 'playing' poker recreationally for 5 years. I've never played real money Online because I can't - as i've explained already, so I don't have any pokertracker stats or graphs, but i've played a good amount of volume (i'm not talking nanonoko style) with play money on pokerstars (don't laugh) and live micro stakes cash with friends and in that poker club.
I used to be a complete nit my first few years of playing because all I knew about poker was watching the 2009 WSOP main and playing this stupid site called Zynga Poker. Instead of remaining an absolute clueless donk who thinks they know how to play after watching TV, I've gotten much better (relatively) from self teaching myself as described below and less tight by playing HU SNG's and Cash.
However nonserious my background looks, I love this game more and more each day and I've still been following poker intensely (hopefully as you can tell by my jargon) and self teaching myself week in and week out for the past 2 years. I've looked up a lot of things online myself, I've watched like 75% of all the poker clips on youtube possibly out there already, tried out/experimented a lot of things through lots of hands, and finally I discovered this amazing community here on 2+2. I know to get better and to the next step I need to ask people who know what they are doing, especially since I don't have the luxury of playing legit regs online.
I've self taught myself to a level where at least intuitively, like Dan Colman says (lol), I can read hands and see many spots without using math. I understand ranges and always use range analysis in my game (but not in a way that ties in pot odds and theory). I just "feel" without much mental calculations - i just do the range analysis thing and "does the story make sense". I also use exploitative strategy and try to adapt to opponents. Again, Like pretty much any concept I've seen and at least understand to some extent (i.e VPIP, floating, PF ranges, 3B/4Bet & multiway pots, blockers, board texture, ICM, donk betting, reverse implied odds, Nash Push-Fold, MTT v 6max v HU play, etc). Aside from more volume, I know the one thing I am absolutely not shored up on in order to move to the next level is general theory and the math part. Whenever I would stumble onto anything about advanced theory with the equity charts and the mathy parts with these formulas, I would be too hesitant to learn that. The only thing i understand is that you need to "make your opponent indifferent from calling or folding" based on your betting size and bluffing frequency, and you need to construct your specific combos of ranges.
So, 2+2, what can I do to improve theory and the math part, and probably my game in general for someone my level? I'm not trying to overestimate my level at all because I know I haven't actually had real online cash game experience, so please any suggestions would be awesome.
Thanks so much especially if you've read to this point haha.
